Skin Care

This past Spring, I embarked on the 2012 Eucerin Healthy Skin Challenge. To kick off this partnership, I had a consultation with Dr. Deborah Sarnoff, a NYC dermatologist. After discussing my skin issues, she recommended the following Eucerin products for me:

After using the products for four months, I had a follow-up consultation with Dr. Sarnoff. Watch the video for a recap of my evaluation and the progress I’ve made, as well as some great tips Dr. Sarnoff gave me for the coming months.

You can get in on the action too. Visit the “Digital Derm” tab on the Eucerin Facebook page! This tab offers you the chance to ask one of Eucerin’s Skin First Council dermatologists a question about their skincare and find a local dermatologist near your home. And if you’re on Twitter, be sure to follow @EucerinUS.

I had totally forgotten about Dermalogica preclense until I was having dinner with my besties the other day and my friend, Jenn, raved about it. She told me how Dermalogica products, particularly the precleanse, were working wonders on her skin – and helping her beat adult acne breakouts.

It’s been a while since I used precleanse, but I knew I still had a bottle somewhere in my beauty arsenal. So this weekend, I did some sleuthing and found it hiding out in the back of my bathroom cabinet.

OMG…thank you, Jenn, for reminding me about this skincare gem! I’ve only been using it for 2 days now and my skin feels and looks so much better!

For those of you unfamiliar with precleanse, it’s exactly what it sounds like. You apply this blend of Olive, Apricot and Kukui Nut oils before your cleanser. It dissolves makeup, sunscreens and oil-based debris, readying them for easy removal. My skin feels so fresh and so clean clean, but not dry or stripped.

It’s so freaking amazing that I cannot fathom how it ended up in the back corner of my medicine cabinet. Nobody – including me – puts precleanse in corner! When I’m wrong, I say I’m wrong.

My skin has been in serious need of detox. My pores are perpetually clogged – it’s like my face is the IT hangout for blackheads. So when I saw the Boscia Black Luminizing Mask on QVC a few months ago (it’s no longer sold there), the demonstration was so compelling that I bought a bottle.

The mask – made with “premier-quality clay” – promises to draw out deeply lodged dirt and oil, exfoliate, shrink pores, firm skin and reduce inflammation. But does it actually deliver? You betcha! As Wesley Snipes said in Passenger 57, “Always bet on black.”

Before I apply, I like to exfoliate my skin with my Clarisonic. The instructions don’t suggest you do that, but I find that exfoliating helps the mask ‘get all up in there,’ so to speak. Next, I apply an even layer (not too much, but not too little) to my clean, dry skin. It’s important to avoid your eyebrows, hairline and lips. Also avoid your eye area by applying below orbital bone. Then you let that baby dry for 15 to 20 minutes. I’ll admit that for the first couple of minutes, it makes my eyes tear up a tiny bit (my eyes are sensitive); but after that, I’m totally fine. Once the mask is completely dry, it takes on a rubberized quality – and you remove it by peeling off from the outer edges. (more…)